Monday, June 21, 2010

Bombay Sapphire to Release New Gin Expression in Late 2010

Bombay Sapphire, the ubiquitous, blue-bottled, and wildly successful offshoot of Bombay Gin, will have a brother by the end of the year.

The Bacardi-distributed product will see its line extended by one in late 2010/early 2011 with a new brand featuring additional botanicals, as well as those found in regular Sapphire. The move follows rival Beefeater's recent efforts to expand its expressions, releasing both Beefeater 24 and Beefeater Summer in the past two years.

Bombay Sapphire was launched in 1987, and was one of the first premium gins to hit the market. It has long since outpaced in sales the original Bombay Gin—which, I'm convinced, many people don't even know exists anymore. The flavouring of Sapphire comes from a recipe of ten botanicals: almond, lemon peel, liquorice, juniper berries, orris root, angelica, coriander, cassia, cubeb, and grains of paradise. Unlike the distillation methods of other, more traditional gins, the botanicals are not steeped in the spirit. Rather, the spirit is triple distilled and the alcohol vapours are passed through a mesh basket containing the ten botanicals in order to catch the flavour and aroma. The result is a lighter—and, to critics, more vodka-like—gin.

The new bottling—which is, at yet, unnamed—will add a few ingredients to the regular botanical mix. What they are has not been revealed, but the result it touted to be a "crisp, vibrant flavor." Price will be about the same as standard Sapphire.

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About Me

Robert Simonson writes about spirits, cocktails and wine for such publications as The New York Times, Imbibe, Edible Brooklyn and Manhattan, Wine Spectator, Wine Enthusiast, and GQ. He holds an advanced certificate from the Wine and Spirits Education Trust, and another from the Beverage Alcohol Resource. He was nominated for 2012 Spirited Award for Best Cocktail Writing.
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